You’re fired, Trump tells AG
> Yates ‘betrayed’ Justice Dept by defying migrant ban
WASHINGTON: An embattled Donald Trump fired his government’s chief lawyer for refusing to defend his controversial immigration orders late Monday, deepening a political crisis engulfing his presidency.
In a caustic statement, Trump’s White House said acting attorney-general Sally Yates ( pic) “betrayed” the Department of Justice in defying the president and had been relieved of her duties with immediate effect.
Yates – a career prosecutor promoted by president Barack Obama and held over by Trump pending confirmation of his own nominee, Senator Jeff Sessions – had refused to defend Trump’s ban on immigration from seven Muslim nations.
In a memo to Department of Justice staff, she expressed doubts about the legality and morality of Trump’s decree.
“My responsibility is to ensure that the position of the Department of Justice is not only legally defensible, but is informed by our best view of what the law is,” Yates wrote.
“I am not convinced that the defence of the executive order is consistent with these responsibilities nor am I convinced that the executive order is lawful,” she added.
“For as long as I am the acting attorney general, the Department of Justice will not present arguments in defence of the executive order, unless and until I become convinced that it is appropriate to do so.”
In the end, her tenure lasted only a few more hours. The White House snapped back, accusing Yates of being “weak on borders and very weak on illegal immigration”.
Trump has replaced Yates with Federal prosecutor Dana Boente as he awaits the Senate confirmation of Sessions.
Boente said he would defend Trump’s directive, stating that it was “both lawful on its face and properly drafted”.
Trump’s executive order suspends the arrival of all refugees for a minimum of 120 days, Syrian refugees indefinitely and bars citizens from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen for 90 days.
Several federal judges have since filed temporary stays against the decree’s implementation.
On Sunday, attorneys general from 16 US states, including California and New York, condemned Trump’s directive as “unconstitutional” and vowed to fight it. – AFP